north facing border

after stumbling about on google maps for an hour i discovered that the border im renovating for next year is north facing, and recieves minimum sun, none at this time of year. so i've armed my self with a list of plants to look at and research . . . is there anything a rookie should know when working in these conditions?? its the first time i'll be doing anything in the shade what plants should i look out for or stay clear of?


next years border . . . ( photo / image / picture from lukeypukey's Garden )


this is the border at midday yeaterday . . . 4 and half feet deep and 30ft long, so quite a big area to work with

 

What are you planning to put there? annuals or perennials, a mix of them, shrubs???? Is this dappled shade, heavy shade, light shade? an area that just doesn't get direct sunshine? Some plants will do better than others depending on the amount and type of shade that the bed has.

impatiens, coleus, ferns, toadlily, hostas, lungwort, ivy, begonias, polka dot plant, caladium, calla lily, these are just a few that come to mind first.

You might need to look to foliage while planning this to accent it with light and dark areas for visual interest.

Hope this helps some, Luke.

 

Shade loving plants like hostas, ferns, impatiens, begonias will do well in your conditions. Shrubs like hydrangeas, hollies, and viburnums do well in shade.
When planning your border, make sure you have different heights and textures. The saddest garden I have ever seen was one that had very expensive plants, all the same height, all with the same size and color of leaves, planted rigidly in a straight row with occasional gaps where a plant just didn't make it.
So, let your plants be mixed, make sure they are plants you'll enjoy looking at, and enjoy planning your plot!

 

hi carolyn, marlingardener, like i said this time of year it gets no sun at all, during summer when the sun is higher in the sky it gets a few hours late afternoon, i'd say it was 3 or 4 in the afternoon before the sun even touches it. i was hoping for a good mix of plants, couple of large shrubs (hydrangea i already have), i love ferns and hosta. the colours im going for is purple, yellow and white, just to tie in with what i already have in the garden (in the narrow border round the grass i have french lavender, and yellow and purple tulips, and my canna which im hoping will be around for a few years yet, that flowers yellow) im debating throwing a large blue poppy in the middle as i have the seeds and it would make a nice focal point with its large flowers and architectural foliage. . . i made the border a good width so i could get the contrasting sizes in there marlin, the border on the opposite side of my garden is very narrow and it doesn't look great

 

Lukey... glad you made the beds deep enough to accommodate a variety of heights. I made the mistake of making a couple of my beds to narrow and now I need to go back and make them deeper.
Can't wait to see what all you do with this space.

 

thanks toni. . . i'll have a good look through those when i get a minute. cheryl i too have a very narrow border and cant make it any wider due to the paving, im just gonna fill it with herbs

 

Lukey, Your area looks like a nice spot to create a new shrub/ flower bed.
When I look at your photo, I am thinking there should be some shrubs that will get some height and soften the lines of the wood fence behind.
Have fun with this project!

 

thanks kay, it should look good. im in the process of looking for tall plants that won't take up much room, or a climber maybe. widening the bed is a possibility, but at the expense of more lawn and i do like the lawn

 

i'd say the hottest this year was around the 30 degrees mark and the coldest last winter was around -10

 

Lukeypukey columbine are always a great perennial to add to a shade garden. Plus they reseed themselves and they come in lavender and yellow combo. Or just lavender (several shades,yellow,pink, and white. With single flowers or double ones. They also come in a shorter variety and a 2 foot tall variety. They don't take up to much room and have such neat leaves to boot. Plus Humming Birds love them. Sounds like you are up to your ears in fun.

 

If you want some good color in the winter, Skimmia is a great evergreen shade plant, with red berries all winter on the female plant. You do need to get both male and female. our Skimia male has pinkish flowers on it now, and the female has bright red berries. Tried to take a picture but it was too dark (shaded,in winter now I guess) Bleeding hearts are a favorite there, and some are now longblooming. Fuchsia, honeysuckle, sweed woodruff is a great groundcover. Hardy jasmine is growing where we can smell the blooms in the summer. Astilbe is good near the front.

 

thanks everyone. i have an epic list of plants to look at, and then the mind boggling task of guessing how they will look together

 

The hosta fern combination is always a good one for shade areas, as it contrasts textures and heights well.

I used impatiens for the first time this year and was amazed at the colour they produced in a full shade area from early spring all the way to first frost. Would work well against the hostas.

Although you have a narrow border nearest the camera, don't forget how much 3 or 5 large plant pots can add some height and width to that edge and when filled with a good mix of sun loving plants will keep peoples attention.

 

thanks dan. . . thats something i hadn't thought of and will definately consider